Two members of the US Congress have expressed concerns and heavily criticized the recent report that evaluated Kenya’s proposed arms deal worth $418 million (Sh43bn) from the US.
The Republican congressmen argued that the findings were arrived at without proper consultations. They said that the US government watchdog agency “reached its findings without even speaking with Kenyan government officials”.
Read: Us agency approves sale of sh43 billion weaponized aircraft to Kenyan military
“We have serious concerns regarding the integrity of the report, and call into question the legitimacy of Government Accountability Office’s (Gao) findings and review,” Congressmen Ted Budd and Duncan Hunter wrote in a September 19 letter to the Government Accountability Office, which functions as Congress’ investigative arm.
The deal was on the sale of US-made combat aircraft.
The two lawmakers, expressing their concerns, said that Gao’s report is questionable and that it “ignored shortcomings in the acquisition process” resulting to the Iomax alternative being “overlooked”.
In the report, Gao indicated that Kenya made a good and reasonable choice in settling for the AT-802L aircraft.
Congressman Budd has repeatedly argued that the AT-802L is not the most advanced or most cost-effective option available to Kenya, claiming that a company based in North Carolina produces better, more advanced aircraft better suited for Kenya’s current needs and that the price would be extremely lower than that of what Gao recommended.
Budd has repeatedly opposed the current deal, saying that IOMAX could supply Kenya with aircraft at a cost $130 million less than the AT802-L planes Kenya is currently seeking to buy.
The deal is currently under scrutiny by a US Congress committee that is yet to set a date f the r release of its own findings.